Bad Admin Habits

Owned by Jodie Miners
Last updated: May 10, 2016
3 min read

Things to not do in your Salesforce Org - Do what I say, not what I do. 

  • Not setting up Mini Page Layouts - they are so useful. 
  • Not having Help Text on EVERY single custom field. Also include a description for WHY it was added. 
  • Adding formula fields to child object so show data from the parent object - just add it to the mini page layout or Custom Report Types instead.
  • Heaps of checkboxes - Unless they are used for frequency reporting in place of a Multi Select Picklist. I HATE checkboxes because they can't be an explicit NO. 
  • Not turning on Enhanced Profile View
  • Not investing in a tool like Rollup Helper or using Declarative Lookup Rollup Summary. There is so much that can be done with these tools. 
  • Not installing apps like Kugamon Account Contact Sync 
  • Not installing or setting up any form of dupe blocking. 
  • Setting up reports to be exported - Question why you exporting data. Use Excel Power Query at least (unless over 2000 rows). 
  • Export your data and back it up. 
  • Not clearly identifying your test data so you can exclude it from reports. 
  • Creating custom objects when a Standard object can be used. 
  • Not linking with external apps - eg Mailchimp or Campaign Monitor
  • Not using Do Not Call and Do Not Email fields
  • Adding values into picklists that are used for only a short time
  • Not setting up page layouts to be logical order of fields and groupings.
  • Keeping related lists on page layouts that are not used. 
  • Not removing Yahoo Maps custom links on Page Layouts - come on - you KNOW you will never click it - especially now with the new integrated maps
  • Not setting up Record Types. 
  • Not setting up a custom App with only the tabs you need.  
  • Adding system only or reporting only fields to page layouts - just use Salesforce Inspector Browser Extensions
  • Using Activities instead of the Feed. 
  • Not using the Feed.
  • Adding Status fields on the object. 
  • Worse still, adding Latest contact fields on the object. USE THE FEED!
  • Adding ALL the information into the Description field. 
  • Having a text field rather than a picklist when reporting on that field and expecting consistent values. 
  • Reporting on Tasks - WHY - who ever looks at these reports? Do you not trust your staff? 
  • Using Tasks to remind people to do stuff. See Action Views, Tasks and Report Alerts
  • Having Excel spreadsheets that relate to any data in Salesforce
  • Doing an import into multiple objects on a regular basis and not using something like Skyvva or one of the Excel based tools to do it quickly and easily. 
  • Having ANY fields in your org that you don't know what they do. 
  • Having ANY records in Salesforce that you can't immediately say why they exist and what benefit they have to the business.
  • Importing data and not including a Data Source - where did this data come from? 
  • Using the Account or Contact record as the place to update information about other records - eg the status of outstanding payments - unless of course it is automated by a Rollup. 
  • Entering Names in a text field - eg the Accounts Payable name - NOPE. Add a Contact with a Type of Accounts Payable, and add that as a lookup to the Account. 
  • Ammending the ALL views to have filter criteria on them so they don't actually return ALL records. 

Reports

  • Not hiding unused report types
  • Not deleting sample reports